New Orleans brings back Lou Amundson & adds Josh Childress

According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the agent of defensive-minded big man Lou Amundson has confirmed that he will be returning to New Orleans to suit up for the Pelicans. In addition, the team has also signed veteran forward Josh Childress (first reported by Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski). The nature of both contracts are unconfirmed by the team, but a source has expressed that Amundson will receive a non-guaranteed one-year deal, likely for veteran’s minimum. To make room for both players’ roster spots, the team will apparently be parting ways with Lance Thomas and Arinze Onuaku, the two Pelicans without fully guaranteed contracts. It will certainly be sad to see a devoted teammate such as Lance go, but his unrelenting work ethic should allow him to find a home with another NBA team. We here at Bourbon Street Shots certainly wish him nothing but the best.

Amundson joined the Hornets late last season, playing in 18 games and averaging just under 12 minutes per contest. While his offensive numbers are by no means flashy, the Hornets allowed nearly 3 points per 100 possessions less with him on the court (per the NBA.com stats tool), a testament to his defensive ability. He also boasted the team’s highest offensive rebound rate among all players with at least 200 minutes played (an admittedly low baseline, but relevant nonetheless). Amundson isn’t someone that needs to be guarded anywhere outside of the restricted area, and for that reason, he isn’t someone who can be relied on for heavy minutes. That being said, what he brings to a team on the defensive side of the ball is enough to make him a worthwhile addition. With Ryan Anderson still sidelined by his toe injury, expect Lou to begin getting minutes immediately. In fact, it wouldn’t be at all surprising to see him on the court tonight against the Lakers, as he has been working out in Los Angeles.

Josh Childress is a 30 year old 6’8″ wing who began his NBA career in 2004 with four strong years as a member of the Atlanta Hawks. His career field goal percentage of 52.2% field goal percentage is evidence of his high basketball IQ, but he hasn’t really been an above average NBA player since the 2007-08 season (before he went overseas). He has also shown above average skills on the offensive glass for his position, averaging 2.5 offensive rebounds per 36 minutes throughout his career. His addition is likely nothing more than as a way to improve team depth, but it could potentially also serve as a maneuver to light a fire under both Al-Farouq Aminu and Tyreke Evans as a potential threat for minutes.

On a personal level, I am excited to see an Amundson/Davis frontcourt duo on defense; though it will have some limitations offensively, teams will have a difficult time scoring on those two. Amundson and Davis played together for 61 minutes last year, and in that time, the Hornets only gave up 86.4 points per 100 possessions, a stellar defensive rating. A small sample size with plenty of extraneous variables to be sure, but it is something worth noting and is a decent enough reason to be intrigued by the thought of seeing the two play together again.

The New Orleans Pelicans’ press release regarding the two transactions can be found here.

9 Comments

The way you put make it sound in the article, this is great news for us haha. I’m okay with it. While I liked Thomas, he didn’t really seem to be making an impact this year. I just hope Amundson isn’t a necessity for too much longer and Anderson can come back quickly.
Do you think Monty would play him at Center and Anderson at PF when he does come back?

Pelicans brought in two servicable guys….a big who will hustle and bang with limited scoring abilty…and a small fwd who is also a decent defender….fair scorer as he has proven that point during his play in the NBA..rememebr i said fair…….its a “nice” move to bring them both in.but i wouldn’t put it in the ” damn that was a great move!”….my biggest concern is still the guard play and see if it evolves on a consistent basis..

Lance will be missed but it goes to prove that they’re definitely trying to make an impact in the playoffs and with Phoenix beating us twice….something had to be done and quickly. Good luck Lance and Arinze.